Supporting excellence
in researchers' careers
through Marie
Skłodowska-Curie Actions
Bratislava, 9 November 2016
Alessandra LUCHETTI
Head of Department – Excellent Science
Research Executive Agency
Content:
•
•
•
•
•
•
MSCA and excellence
MSCA today
Impact of MSCA
MSCA some achievements
Study 'Research Careers in Europe'
MSCA researchers' quotes
The Marie Skłodowska-Curie
actions (MSCA): supporting excellence
Research
Training
Skills
Mobility
Career perspectives
Fellows at the forefront of science
•
Stefan W. Hell, one of the winners of
the Nobel Prize for Chemistry 2014 was
awarded an MCA postdoctoral Individual
Fellowship in 1996: 'a critical moment in my
career'.
•
30 scientists supported by the FP7 MCA
were involved in the 2012 discovery of the
Higgs Boson at CERN.
•
The 2016 discovery of gravitational
waves brought a new way to observe some
of the darkest events in our universe. An
FP7 MCA project contributed to the
breakthrough
with
14
early-stage
researchers, coordinated by the European
Gravitational Observatory.
MCA fellows –
ERC grantees:
30
28
MCA FP7 fellows
with
ERC Starting/
Consolidator
Grants
FP7 MCA individual fellows with ERC StG/CoG
25
20
24
15
10
10
5
4
2
1
0
2007
•
•
2009
2011
2012
2013
2014
Already 85 FP7 individual fellows are now ERC Principal
Investigators
Progress compared to FP6: even five years after its end, there
were only 68 MCA individual fellows among ERC Principal
Investigators
Content:
•
•
•
•
•
•
MSCA and excellence
MSCA today
Impact of MSCA
MSCA some achievements
Study 'Research Careers in Europe'
MSCA researchers' quotes
Features of the MSCA
•
Excellent and innovative research training
•
Open to all career stages and nationalities
•
Bottom-up approach
•
Attractive career and knowledge-exchange opportunities
through mobility
•
International, intersectoral and interdisciplinary
•
Development of knowledge and enhancement of skills
•
Promotion of attractive working and employment conditions
MSCA Calls
RISE
COFUND
Research & Innovation
Staff Exchange
Co-Funding of Regional,
National & International
Programmes
What does it offer?
What does it offer?
ITN
IF
Innovative Training
Networks
Individual
Fellowships
What does it offer?
What does it offer?
High-quality research
training delivered through
interdisciplinary
networks, industrial
doctorates or joint
doctorates.
Opportunities to work on
personal research projects
by moving between
countries and possible
sectors to acquire new
skills.
The exchanges of staff
members involved in
research and innovation
to develop sustainable
collaborative projects and
the transfer of knowledge.
Who applies?
Who applies?
Who applies?
International networks of
research organisations
from the academic and
non-academic sectors
Individual researchers
together with the host
organisations
International networks of
research organisations
from the academic and
non-academic sectors
Who is funded?
Who is funded?
Who is funded?
Researchers at doctoral
level (less than 4 years of
full-time research
experience and no
doctoral degree)
Postdoctoral researchers
Researchers, technical
administrative and
managerial staff of any
nationality and at all
career levels
Call details:
Call details:
Call details:
Opens: 15 September 2016
Closes: 10 January 2017
Budget: 430M€
Opens: 11 April 2017
Closes: 14 September 2017
Budget: 248M€
Opens: 1 December 2016
Closes: 5 April 2017
Budget: 80M€
Regional national or
international programmes
to foster excellence in
training mobility and
career development of
researchers
Who applies?
Organisations funding or
managing doctoral or
fellowships programmes
Who is funded?
Researchers at doctoral
and postdoctoral level
Call details:
Opens: 5 April 2017
Closes: 28 September 2017
Budget: 80M€
Content:
•
•
•
•
•
•
MSCA and excellence
MSCA today
Impact of MSCA
MSCA some achievements
Study 'Research Careers in Europe'
MSCA researchers' quotes
MSCA addressing
policy issues (1):
The impact of the MSCA on Europe's needs:
Excellence
MC fellows score higher on both citations of given publications by
other authors and the journal impact factor
Career drivers and employability
•
MCF contributed to key career drivers: access to excellent labs,
engaging professional networks, improving skills
•
MCF improved fellows employability, better than other types of
fellowships
Marie Curie researchers and their long-term career
development study 2014:
http://ec.europa.eu/research/fp7/pdf/mca/marie_curie_researchers_a
nd_their_long-term_career_development.pdf
MSCA addressing
policy issues (2):
The impact of the MSCA on Europe's needs:
Engaging businesses in research training
•
MSCA have funded 887 enterprises since 2014, which represents
37% of total beneficiaries
ERA key priorities
•
Facilitating mobility, supporting training and ensuring attractive
career
And more…
Content:
•
•
•
•
•
•
MSCA and excellence
MSCA today
Impact of MSCA
MSCA some achievements
Study 'Research Careers in Europe'
MSCA researchers' quotes
MSCA in FP7
Outcomes of 2007-2013 programme
•
95% of MSCA fellows had
employment positions two years after
the end of their fellowship.
•
37% of MSCA fellows were women,
whereas on average 33% of EU
researchers were female.
•
Evidence that participating
organisations improved their practices
in respect of recruitment and
working conditions.
•
MSCA fellows were of 140 different
nationalities. 24% were from
countries outside the EU Member
States or FP7 Associated Countries.
MSCA in H2020
MSCA – first years of Horizon 2020
•
•
•
•
•
2014 calls MSCA funded
• 2 000 organizations in 96 countries
• 4 000 researchers
• 8 700 staff exchanges
2014 and 2015 calls
• 19 500 proposals evaluated
• with help of 4 000 experts
• 2 800 GAs signed
2016 – 20 years of the Marie Curie brand
Early 2017 – 100 000 supported
researchers
Several Nobel Prize winners previously
involved in the MSCA
Content:
•
•
•
•
•
•
MSCA and excellence
MSCA today
Impact of MSCA
MSCA some achievements
Study 'Research Careers in Europe'
MSCA researchers' quotes
"Research Careers in Europe"
Results and Recommendations:
1. Perception and promotion of research career
2. Dual careers in research
3. Research career restart
Research Careers in Europe
1.Perception and promotion of research
career
•
Continue improving the financial conditions and
opportunities - particularly for early-stage researchers
•
Importance of promoting research careers - raise
awareness among the universities and other employers
•
Increase scope of outreach activities in MSCA - make them
more experimental/interactive and better adapted to a nonscientific audience
•
Open Science agenda – explore how MSCA can contribute to it
•
Adequate science popularization instruments - continuous
using and adapting them to specific target groups
Research Careers in Europe
2.Dual careers in research
•
Dual career - main factor impacting researchers mobility: Raise
awareness among national authorities and employers about it
•
More funding supporting dual careers - for organizations and
for instruments
•
Dual career couple procedures - to develop, promote and
exchange good practices
•
Dual-career-friendly environment - possibility of introducing
it in existing EU programmes
Research Careers in Europe
3.Research career restart
•
Long-term research positions - increase their overall number
•
Flexible working arrangements preventing research career
breaks - promote the measures
•
Acceptance of research career breaks – support specific
measures aiming at its acceptance among employers
•
MSCA Career Restart Panel – increase the visibility, extension
of the fellowships
•
Supporting part-time fellowships - including professional
reasons
Content:
•
•
•
•
•
•
MSCA and excellence
MSCA today
Impact of MSCA
MSCA some achievements
Study 'Research Careers in Europe'
MSCA researchers' quotes
‘When I read that my Marie Curie project was accepted, I felt
like opening the window of my room and enjoying that fantastic
spring day. The first thing I did was to call my mother and my
family to tell them the great news.’
Maria Jover-Cobos, LIF science researcher
‘I am living a dream that comes true
again every single day. The Marie
Curie fellowship has put me in a
stimulating environment with
outstanding researchers, which is
most likely to facilitate my scientific
production. Thus I can extend the
record of my papers by a
considerable amount, both in
qualitative and in quantitative terms,
and achieve standards of definite
excellence.’
Salvatore Tringali, researcher in the
field of mathematical modelling
‘The Marie Curie fellowship is very attractive because it is
based on merit and genuinely promotes excellence, which
grants researchers with a prominent status at the European
and international level. Also, it provides the necessary
conditions to develop an indepth research. Third, the basic
concept of mobility pushes the researcher to broaden his
intellectual horizon and to acquire a truly European and
international mindset.’
Ottavio Quirico, researcher in the field of security
‘When I applied to a Marie Curie programme, I
did not have the faintest idea of the fantastic
experience I would have for the next three years!
I have always been interested in research and
being from South Africa, the opportunity to come
to Europe – to a whole different world in terms of
science and research – was a dream come true.’
Raelize du Plooy, researcher in the transport field
MSCA 20 years of scientific excellence
29/11/2016
http://ec.europa.eu/research/mariecurieactions/news-events/events/year/2016/112920-years-msca_en.htm
Thank you for
your attention!